Monday, 30 March 2009

A couple of days ago I was sent to a "domestic" just after coming on duty at 07:00. I arrive and am greeted by a bedraggled older female who has smeared lipstick and the unmistakable make-up effect that comes from crying. The first words she says to me are something like I have had head problems since I was 19 and have been sectioned loads, I shrug my shoulders and then comes the clincher, I have taken 18 paracetamol tablets. Oh drat.....either way I am going to be spending sometime at the hospital with her. Her partner comes out and states that she has wrecked their flat and has been talking to herself for the last few days. She then starts telling me that she wants to die as her 27 year old daughter won't talk to her and there is nothing worth living for. I look at the odds, leave her there with a tissue. No, that won't do on this occasion. Lock her up breach of the peace....no hospital will soon be my home for a few hours as she has taken an overdose. I bite the bullet and tell her she is being detained under section 136 of the mental health act. She then thanks me and tells me that she has felt herself getting worse in her head but there is no way that she will voluntarily go to the doctor.Off to Notgreatside County Hospital and do the deed. Oh well, my citizen focus/policing pledge/victim charter and all the other bollocks will go on hold today. She is unfortunately quite scantily clad (not good on this one) and starts asking me personal questions. According to her I am her best friend now. A colleague arrives to assist with toilet/fag breaks. She too soon becomes a best friend. She was initially volatile and obviously didn't like the medical staff, she was handcuffed whilst they examined her as she lashed out at them.Eventually she calms down and after telling us what she has done to herself in the past and how bad life has become since she got divorced about 6 years ago and meeting her new partner. He is also a regular customer and I know from previous dealings that he is pure pondlife. It appears that there is some common ground. She remembers me from one incident where I attended their flat and actually had to fight him as he wasn't too keen on getting arrested for what was a borderline very serious assault on her.In order to pass the time we stared talking about her previous life and even with the circumstances she was currently under, I believed her. She is 51, and appears quite educated. She was up to speed on political matters and current affairs. Her current lifestyle has taken it's toll but she was obviously once attractive. I ask her more about her daughter and she shows me a photo of an oriental looking beautiful young girl stood next to her at a family party, despite the features the resemblance is incredible.In confidence she asks me if she can tell me her life story since her dad died when she was 17, how her mum couldn't look after all 6 kids and essentially kicked her out. The welfare system wasn't quite as geared up as it is today and she found herself homeless. She reverted to society's oldest profession and earned a living servicing the sailors at the docks. One sailor in particular was good to her and as the ship was undergoing repairs she ended up spending a lot of time with him on the ship. To quote her exact phrase she became a "ship's whore". The ship was registered in Malaysia and the crew mostly hailed from there. Eventually the ship left and so did she. She told me about captain's bribes to port officials, customs inspections and various other encounters she had whilst hiding on the ship with the full consent of the captain who she also serviced as part of her "fare". The hiding places she described were incredible but believable. She frequently re-assured me that this was all true as she knew she was going for an extended stay at a hospital and there was no way I would ever be able to prosecute her.Eventually the ship docks in Malaysia and calm as you like she leaves the ship with her favourite sailor and disappears into society. She tells me about the good times and the bad she has there and produces a dated photo showing a younger version of her on some gorgeous beach along with an oriental male, she is clearly pregnant and looked happy.Anyway moving on daughter is born and as you have to pay for medical services the fact that she shouldn't really have been in the country was never a problem. She went on to tell me that she found out she was allergic to prawns when eaten in vast quantities and also when a fish fin cuts your leg, all be it dead and through a bag, it can be poisonous and cause infection.Eventually the bubble burst about 8 years ago when her brother died in a car crash. She was then faced with the problem of getting back to the UK. She had never owned a passport as she was effectively a stow away and had been an unseen member of society. She went to the British consulate and explained her circumstances. They were duly helpful and the only hiccup came with her 19 year old daughter who was subsequently made a British citizen in Malaysia.When she returned for the funeral the rot started in her life. Circumstances effectively caused her to lose her mind. No money to return to her adopted home and nowhere to live. Her mum was still alive but in sheltered accommodation.Anyway her life crumbled and 8 years later she was sitting in a chair in an assessment room at a hospital........ again. Her husband has since passed away following their divorce and his family want nothing to do with her after this length of time.She was subsequently admitted to the care of a mental health unit and she appeared genuinely relieved.I know that all this should be taken with a pinch of salt when her frame of mind is considered but for once I genuinely believed her. Her attention to detail was too much for her to make it up.I know that the vast majority of people who are sectioned by the police are there through their own alcohol/drug induced problems but sometimes there are people there who have genuinely been dealt a shitty hand.

Friday, 27 March 2009

I have just read Twining's post and feel de-valued. I joined the Police as a Constable. I am white, heterosexual and apart from a few injuries not visibly disabled.

Why do we have to have the BPA, MPA, AWPO just to name a few.

Surely we are all out there to help the public and give the scrotes a hard time. I don't care if you are black,white, brown, pink or even a little bit cerise, just get on with the job and do what you are paid to do.

Shall we try to form an association of white, heterosexual, non disabled police officers or would we be prevented from doing so as it is incorrect? Anyway the initials aren't coherent or don't form a pleasing mnemonic.

We all should do the same job so why have the associations in the organisation? Positive discrimination perhaps?

Just get on with it those of you who have forgotten to be impartial and feel the need to segregate and highlight your particular creed. How can you treat the public impartially when you need to form/join an association that disassociates you from your colleagues.

In order not to appear racist I have colleagues on my block who originate from Somalia, Bangladesh and................. Scotland! They too are in despair of the Police "service" and the pandering to be politically correct.

I await being "moderated" by Google and readers without baited breath.

Sunday, 22 March 2009

First of all, apologies to Joey Smith. You have nothing whatsoever to do with this post. Thank you for your picture.

A couple of days ago I drove into and area that for a long time has had a dispersal notice in place. These only run normally for 3-6 months but in this instance it has run for over 12 months with a willing approval by the powers that be. IE magistrates, council and police etc.

There is a family there who have over the years caused numerous problems, one year I attended after there was a report of gunfire at about 3 PM on Christmas Day, AFO's attended due to the address and once it was deemed as safe we went in and the family were reluctant to explain why there were turkey particles embedded in the wall along with numerous shotgun pellets. There was no trace of a firearm after an exhaustive search and the matter was filed as intelligence purposes.

Anyway moving on there are 5 brothers who have in their time caused untold problems in the area. 2 of them are currently serving lengthy sentences due to drug or firearm offences the other 3, one is permanently off his tits on crack, the 2nd is just really thick and though a big lad satisfies himself with random acts of violence, but always cries when locked up. The 3rd is well nothing at all, he lives off the reputation and has not got the bollocks to follow his older bro's reputations. He even had a couple of legitimate businesses once that came to nothing, he was always too willing to cross the line between right and wrong. When you run a security firm on dodgy money you have to be careful. He isn't.

Anyway, as I was driving through the square a little boy who was holding the hand of his grandmother, the mother of all these delightful people waves at the police car so I wave back despite his company. She promptly shouts xxxx don't wave at them you should shoot them. I can't believe it, his school is probably teaching him one thing which is promptly forgotten when he arrives home.

Grannie subsequently issued with an £80 fixed penalty for public order and little boy was delighted to play with buttons which makes blue lights come on whilst the paperwork was briefly done.

Saturday, 21 March 2009

Incase you were wondering, this is not a piece of self gratification, this is an Egyptian female protesting about what will be explained below.

In reference to my last post, thank you for your wishes. It is just a case of waiting for CT scan results in order to find out how extensive the op is going to be. I have been positively encouraged to continue by the Mrs so here is the next instalment.

The call sounds routine and mundane, a young girl is found by a concerned member of the public wandering the streets at about 11 o'clock at night. This nice person then does the decent thing and takes her to a police station. The girl is African in origin and is dressed only in her coat, pyjamas and fake Ugg boots. She is from our area and subsequently we are sent to transport her back home. Sounds simple. Arrive at the neighbouring station and get introduced to X. I sit in the room and tell her that we are going to take her home. The change is dramatic, she was quiet and pleasant at first but upon hearing this she turns into a mad thing. She is small for her age and is stick thin. Obviously there is some sort of problem and as she was so small I am scared to stop her from lashing out. I think of my own kids and just stay seated talking quietly to her. Eventually she stops and sits down again, she couldn't really hurt me anyway. She then rolls up one of her sleeves and I see the perfectly formed welt shape caused by a belt. The buckle is very distinct. She then goes on to tell me that she doesn't want to go home because she will be hurt again. I ask her who is hurting her and it transpires that her father whips her and her mother has also hurt her too. I ask what her mother has done and she points to her groin. I struggle to understand, surely her mother hasn't raped her? She then told me that she was taken to see someone who hurt her whilst pointing to her groin. I still can't think what she is talking about. I ask her if it still hurts, she shakes her head. In typical dumb ignorance I ask her if someone has made her do something she didn't want to, she shrugs her shoulders. I am for once a little out of my depth. The clear assault that she has suffered from the belt I am certain of, the other matter leaves me a little confused. I am certain however that she can't go home. I speak to the Inspector who after listening states that she should go to hospital and have further examination by medical staff. He will start the process for a PPO and that social services should be notified.

I don't want to scare her further by putting her in a police car so ask for an ambulance. My female colleague will go with her. Whilst waiting the bell rings in the front office and the duty officer comes to tell me that the caller is her father who has somehow heard that his daughter is at the police station. He has come to take her home. I go to speak to him and after a quick glance at his belt see that the buckle is a perfect match to the welt on her arm. I ask him to wait whilst I go to speak to my colleague, she takes the young girl to a more private part of the station whilst I arrest the father for assault. He shrugged his shoulders and said she deserved it. She shouldn't have lost her school project. I stand in a quandary, I can't believe the casual nature with which he said it. I understand that parents have the right to chastise their children but whipping them with a belt buckle seems a bit too much.

Moving on, the girl is taken to a local children's hospital whilst I convey her father to custody. The country they come from is notoriously difficult for citizens to obtain passports, so the whole matter takes a different slant, are they illegal immigrants? He is bedded down for the night whilst enquiries follow. My radio chirps with a PTP and through poor reception, my colleague is in a hospital, I learn that the girl has a multitude of welts across her dark skin and their is something more sinister. Her vaginal area shows "some irregularities", still being the dozy arse I ask if it looks like she has been raped at which point my colleague states that I should let the inspector know and contact the hospital. The connection drops off. I wonder what is happening and call the boss. He tells me that without delay I should go to her home address and basically stay there until social services attend, after ascertaining who is there don't let anyone leave or enter and treat it as a crime scene. He then mentions female genital mutilation. I'm not that ignorant, I have heard of it but that takes place in African countries doesn't it? Surely not here in Notgreatside?

It does happen in this country I can now vouch for that, another younger girl was also taken from the address by social services and the mother was subsequently arrested on suspicion of assault. Thankfully the younger child was unhurt.

I got home from nights and waited for my daughters to wake up, I know that I am not perfect but I am thankful that our society does not demand this ritual. I looked at them both and felt that I would never ever be in the position that I would ever whip them with my belt. The other matter would never be an option as our society doesn't demand it.

I now don't know how to think. I have seen an extremely frightened little girl who has been beaten and subject to a primitive ritual that holds no place in any country. I have also been instrumental in breaking up a family unit, whether that family should have been in the UK at all is irrelevant. What was quite ironic when all parties had gone their separate ways and both parents were waiting in their cells for the morning was that all four were HIV +.

The kids were born with it, the father should perhaps ...............oh had better stop now because who knows?

Wednesday, 11 March 2009

Sorry won't be posting for a while, just had news that Mrs CC.C after a scan has some problems that could be quite life changing. No disrespect to you all but that is a bit more important at the moment. Waiting for further CT scans and an op.

Have actually got nothing to tell you at this time. All is well on the home front, it is my wife's birthday tomorrow and shopping has been the order of the day. I have had a couple of pints in the pub and am now back at home with no apparent stresses.

Errm, no-one has caused me unnecessary stress and Annette, my BP feels fine. I have not been verbally or physically abused and for once don't feel like I am 39 years old. My bank account is in good order and my wife and kids are fine. Not sure what tomorrow will bring, maybe a pub lunch or tea to celebrate and then just total normality, whatever that may be.

I don't seem to have the chaotic lifestyle that so many of our customers do even whilst not working. I have even been to the pub and consumed alcohol and don't even feel remotely like battering my wife or smashing up the house. Why?

Will leave it at that thought and if you want, tell me difference between people who have some sort of structure in their life and those who have none.

Monday, 2 March 2009

I continually read in the press about how x number of police officers have been recruited. Apparently there are now more police officers on the street than there have ever been.

I have a simple question, where are they?

I have just done my weekend of nights and with a bit of leave included (for my wife's birthday) won't have to face the maddening hordes till next Wednesday.

We supposedly "policed" over 350 000 people on Friday, Saturday and Sunday night with only 6 people, run ragged doesn't even come come close. There were other people on shift but they had to go and look after the night time economy in the city centre. There were other officers on duty, you could see them in their vans but they were non deployable by the radio room. I drove over 4 miles with lights and sound to get to a road for an confrontational burglary only to find a van full of officers in the road stop checking some youths who were drinking on a corner.Why couldn't they have dealt with it? Oh sorry forgot, non deployable! Was positively charming with them when I discovered that they were even on the same channel as me. I am sure a 7 year colleague will not speak to me again but he was vehement that they had been abstracted purely to deal with the burglary problem?

When I joined I swore an oath to the Queen, was told on the completion of my basic training that I was now part of the emergency services and my life would never be the same again and that I had a responsibility that existed in my off duty life. Off duty I have not always adhered to that as the mobile phone is always better when you have two young kids with you when something happens that needs attention. On duty I will always go and do whatever needs to be done. I probably am judgemental and will address each job according to the way it is relayed to me. I know shortcuts through the streets and how to deal with the detritus that faces me in an average day. I know where I work and also know that to try and do it on foot like the vast majority of the people want would not work.

To effectively Police these days you have to have a car. For the job mentioned before I was there in just over 3 minutes and the caller was so grateful for my prompt attendance. . A dog unit was soon there and a search unfortunately produced nothing. This area has been battered by burglaries and the officers at the end of the street were on overtime to try and address this. If they had dealt with the job maybe the offender could have been caught. He was obviously garden hopping trying his luck at the back.

If I had been on foot how long would it take at 2 in the morning? No buses and a very long walk/run. Wake up Joe public, you now call us more and Heartbeat isn't a real scenario! You moan if attendance within the hour is promised but the only patrol available is sitting with a car that is waiting to be recovered due to it being stolen in a burglary. In short because of the public forgetting how to control their lives, foot officers won't ever work again. You won't let us! It is a rare relief to go out on foot and do the job as you know the radio room won't consider you as a deployable resource. I very rarely get this opportunity unless tutoring and in the end always end up being dragged back to the nick to get another vehicle back on the streets

Not sure where this came from, suffering from a bit of sleep deprivation at the moment but there may well be more officers on the streets now. I work the 24/7 shift pattern and am frequently rogered to go to other areas within my BCU only to find officers who are on duty but not deployable with a huge Chinese banquet sitting around a table in the canteen. This happens in the area where I work and I frequently ask sarcastically if their radios are working, turned on etc. Incidentally didn't eat last night as it was too busy, noticed that the voice on the radio changed for at at least an hour about 2 A.M. The original operator did return and stopped me from finishing my microwave tupperware box at approximately, no exactly 03:13. Stuck with a long job from there on!

Regards, not sure if this makes sense to anyone other than those of us on 3 shifts who are the real police and not those who work in order to suit the neighbourhood demand. To those who are on duty albeit overtime just remember that you too are sworn constables, the buck doesn't stop with response officers!

Sunday, 1 March 2009

It's the end of a pig (no pun intended) of a night shift and I am just waiting for the kids to properly wake up and come down. I like to do that of a morning, puts some perspective back into life after a shift of chaos. It was like a scene from Bugsy Malone but with real weapons and no cream pies from 21:00-07:00 last night.

I have just somehow found this and it started a reluctant thought train, well handcart so beloved of western films involving goldmines.

It made me wonder what the hell is going on? There is outrage at flags being flown on St Georges day despite that today there will be many Welsh dragons flapping outside in a non-discriminatory manner. On 17Th March there will also be many flags flying without condemnation from anywhere. The flags that we fly are ceremonial in nature and indicate an allegiance to our particular country within the UK.

Now that February is over am I suddenly going to forget that we have people in the force who aren't heterosexual and that our "client base" also contains people who aren't? No. Will I treat them any different to how I normally would? No. By the way I am not in North Wales HEDDLU.

How does a Chief Constable justify this? I for one am proud to see the Union Jack flying from the flagstaff when I go to work. It sort of re-enforces the fact that my cap badge has ER II on it. I'm absolutely sure that someone got promoted/big slap on the back for the idea but please, was it necessary to fly this flag? Half, if not more, of the people who saw it probably wouldn't have recognised what it was